This relates to electrostatic discharge protection and, particularly, to circuits for handling electrostatic discharges related to integrated circuits.
An electrostatic discharge may occur as a result of buildup of static electricity. For example, a person walking on a wool rug on a dry winter day can generate a charge of tens of thousands of volts. Although such electrostatic discharges usually involve a relatively minor flow of current, they are sufficient to destroy some microelectronic circuits.
For example, complementary metal oxide semiconductor integrated circuits are sensitive to static electricity, particularly before being inserted into a larger circuit on a printed circuit board. Furthermore, the complementary metal oxide semiconductor circuits themselves are typically unable to handle any significant power, so it is difficult and expensive to arrange on-chip protection by dedicating certain portions of the chip to electrostatic discharge protection.